Boyfriend
by xonceuponatimex
Summary: Harry likes Draco, but can't tell anyone. Especially the object of his desire. Draco thinks Harry is hot, but straight. What happens when the two of them return to Hogwarts? WIll old rivalries start back up? Draco/Harry Slash. Rated M for sexual content.
1. Attraction

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Harry Potter universe, J. K. Rowling is the brains behind it all.

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><p><strong>Boyfriend<strong>

**Chapter 1: Attraction  
><strong>

The clouds cast shadows onto his face as he lay there in the grass of his backyard. Harry smiled at the sound of Hermione and Ron bickering drifting out through the kitchen window, a daily occurrence since they'd broken up 3 months ago. It had been 4 years since the war had ended, and finally Harry had managed to find peace within himself and was able to feel the happiness that other people felt in their day to day life.

Well, at least, until the other day when he had unexpected feelings rise up inside him with someone that he hadn't thought could ever evoke that kind of visceral reaction.

**_flashback_**

_Harry wandered through the streets of muggle London, the sun beating down on his head. People crowded the streets on one of the few good days of the year. Girls in shorts and guys in tanks took the chance to show of their skin. _

_Harry ducked into a muggle record store; he had recently bought an old turntable and had set it up in his living room. Luckily his house didn't have the problem with muggle devices that Hogwarts had._

_He wandered through the rows of records before coming to a stop at the shelves in front of the store window. He was flicking through records and saw through the window a group of young women following a guy down the street, whispering and giggling. _

_Maybe it was someone famous? _

_He looked at the guy. He was tall, about 6"1' or 6"2' he guessed, with chin length platinum blond hair that was swept to the side, hiding his face from Harry's view. He wore tight black dress pants and blue and white pinstriped shirt with a red tie. He had his hands in his pockets as his long legs carried him down the street._

_Harry gaze followed him, admiring the way his pants made his ass look fantastic and the obvious lean muscle that showed through his shirt. Harry felt his loins stir and almost groaned aloud as want started stirring within him._

_It was then that the good-looking stranger turned around and Harry realized for the first time that he knew him._

_It was Draco Malfoy.  
><em>

**_flashbackend  
><em>**_  
><em>

Harry moaned aloud and rolled over, burying his face in the grass.

He had known for a while now, but had never admitted to anyone, that he was bisexual. After a drunken exploration of the muggle bar scene in London one night, he had ended up in the bed of a muggle boy two years his senior and deliciously sexy in a rumpled artist kind of way.

Harry hadn't been a virgin in a long time. He and Ginny had a "celebration" a couple of days after the Final Battle, the relationship however barely lasted two months after that, the two of them splitting amiably and remaining friends. He had had flings with a few girls since then, he occasional one-night-stand even, but no one that had made him want to settle into a relationship. However, this one drunken night, with a guy no less, he wrote off as a drunken mistake that would never know the light of day.

He tried to forget about it, went on dates with a few women, but it didn't necessarily feel right. He was definitely still attracted to women, but he was also attracted to men.

Harry reddened; he still felt embarrassed when he thought about a guy in a sexual way. I was as if he were an inexperienced teenager again.

"Harry, do you want to come to Merlin Mall with us!" Hermione's shout through the kitchen window drew Harry out of his daze.

"Sure!" Harry rolled over to his front and then stood up in one smooth movement. His Auror training had helped him attain a grace of movement few acquired; even Ron had gotten his ling limbs under control. Harry wandered in through the backdoor and the smell of gingerbread cookies greeted him. Hermione had been on a baking spree ever since Harry had a traditional muggle kitchen installed in his newly acquired home.

Harry slid his feet into his boots sitting by the back door and grabbed his leather jacket off the hook. Ron grinned at him as he ran down the stairs and through the kitchen before disappearing through to the living room.

When Harry had originally bought the house it had just been him, however he missed having a house full of people after living in the Auror trainee barracks for two years. Soon after he invited Hermione and Ron to move in, though Hermione would only be there during the holidays since she was now a Professor at Hogwarts. She had the downstairs bedroom, next to the front door and across the hall from the library/study. Harry and Ron occupied two of the three bedrooms upstairs, the third being more of a storage area at that moment.

Harry strode through the hallway to the front door, Hermione emerged her honey curls tamed and frizz free.

"Ready?" She asked, wand at the ready. Harry nodded and Ron came running.

"Hold up!" He knocked his head on the doorframe, being 6'4" he tended to do that a lot. Hermione laughed and opened the front door, the moment she stepped onto the stoop she disappeared with a crack. Ron followed suit and before Harry disapparated too, he muttered the usual locking charms as well as an alarm jinx as well. After a few stalkers he was careful with his home.

Harry reached into his wand holster (similar to a gun holster) and drew his wand. He then turned on the spot and disapparated.

During the war Diagon Alley was severely damaged, and four years later it was still in a state of upheaval and refurbishment. However the wizarding population of London needed somewhere to shop and gather. That's when Merlin Mall popped up, near Piccadilly Circus. It had similar shops to what Diagon Alley had, but many of the original businesses had gone bankrupt. This allowed new ones to try and make their way in the community.

Harry, Ron and Hermione arrived in the designated apparition station, near the pedestrian entrance. It was a gleaming room of pewter tiles and skylights.

Harry walked out into the bustling avenue, his senses assaulted by young children yelling, vendors hawking their wares and the cracks of apparition behind him. He grinned and pushed Ron and Hermione in front of him down the street.

"I just have to make a stop at Braggart's Books. I need to make a final decision on what textbooks to assign for the 6th and 7th year Arithmancy students." She hurried off to the bookstore, a broad smile on her tanned face.

Ron laughed. "Always the bookworm. Do you want to head to Madam Malkins? I need a new holster, mines just about had it." Ron had become rather broad and muscled, and had stretched the seams of his leather holster rather thin across the back of his shoulders.

"Nah might just head on down to the Loony, grab a beer." It was the perfect afternoon to sit outside in the sun with a nice cold beer. He was just about salivating at the thought.

Ron nodded. "Sounds good, I'll join you after. I'll let Hermione know too. Maybe she'll turn up after she's done. I doubt it though. She is a girl after all, might be here till closing." He chuckled and gave a half wave as he headed down the left side of the street.

Harry shrugged on his jacket, and pulled his shaggy black fringe over his forehead. He wandered down the street, occasionally stopping and looking at window displays. He noticed a comic book in one with moving pictures of him fighting Voldemort at the Final Battle. After all this time still trying to capitalize on something that nearly destroyed the very foundations of their world.

The alley ended in a dead end, and the Loony was a bar that spilled out onto the street with wooden tables and candles in glass jars floating above them.

Harry strolled into the dark interior and headed straight for the bar. On weekends, amateur bands played on the small stage other nights there was a jukebox made by WWW standing next to the bar. There were intimate booths around the perimeter of the bar and high bar tables around the place. He spotted Seamus at the bar, the resident bartender, when he was concocting drinks that would even blow the tail off a dragon.

"Hiya Harry! What'll it be?" Seamus grinned at him as he flicked his wand and a cloth started to polish the cleaned glasses.

Harry leant on the bar, his leather jacket creaking as it stretched across his shoulders.

"Uh... Gimme a pint of whatever's on tap. Thanks" He sat down on one the stools at the bar, leaning back with his elbows on the bar and boots crossed in front of him.

The bar was busy, as it was wont to do on a sunny Saturday afternoon. It looked as if a bachelor party was well under by the looks of one corner of the bar. Men laughing loudly and empty classes crowding the table. It looked as if the groom had a bra strapped to the top of his head. Harry half-smiled, remembering George's bachelor party before his wedding to Angelina. He might have possibly been more drunk then, than that time in London...

Harry's smile dropped when that thought crossed his mind. It was at the moment that Seamus handed him his beer. He swallowed half his glass then and there. One of the guys in the bachelor group saw Harry watching them and winked at him. He grinned back, the guy was pretty hot, dark brown hair and a grin to die for.

Fuck. He was definitely into guys.

He shook his fringe out of his eyes, grabbed his glass and walked outside to one of the tables. Just as he sat down he felt the hairs prickle on the back of his neck as if someone was watching him. He turned and looked around him but couldn't see anyone. He shrugged and sat down, the sun shone right into his eyes so he pulled out a pair of black square shaped sunglasses. He had gotten rid of his glasses when he entered the Auror training force, as they contributed too greatly to him being recognized by the general public.

He was near the bottom of his glass when Ron came strolling down the street, his long legs eating up the pavement in the space of any normal wizards two strides. Ron's hair was tied back in a short pony and a dark red shadow graced his jaw.

Ron reached the bar and straddled the bench in front of him. Seamus came out and greeted the two laughing jovially at something. Harry, however, was off in a daydream, thinking about the encounter he had had on the previous Tuesday. The same feeling he had in his stomach then rose up again now, arousal fighting it's way to the surface. Draco Malfoy was definitely the last person he ever expected to have a gut-wrenching attraction for. Shit.

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><p>Draco lounged in one of the booths of the Loony, Firewhisky in his hand. Across from him sat long time friend Blaise Zabini. They were celebrating Draco's new job as Assistant Professor of Potions. Now that Snape was Headmaster he couldn't teach all his normal classes and run the school. So he had hired Draco, who was now a potions master in his own right, to teach 1st years through to the 5th years and Snape would just teach the advanced classes.<p>

He took a sip of his drink and raised an eyebrow at Blaise as he flirted with the barmaid. He shook his head and stared out the window. There were a few tables occupied, but at one table there was one of the hottest guys Draco had seen, well the back of him anyway.

He had black hair, short at the back, long fringe at the front. Gorgeously rumpled. He had long muscled legs clad in tight denim and a black biker jacket stretched across his wide back. The mystery guy tilted his head back as he took a drink of his beer and the profile of his face was slightly obscured by the sun. Draco knew he was staring, but it had been a while since he'd last... Done anything. Gay or not, this man was gorgeous.

It was at this moment that a big redheaded bear of a man sat down in front of this guy. It was at that moment that Draco realized who the mystery man was... Harry Potter. An angry scowl appeared on his face, though the arousal in his lap was slower to dissipate. He saw the two of them laughing at something and turned to scowl at his drink instead. Not only did it have to be Harry Potter, it had to be he straightest man alive. He'd seen pictures of him splashed across the newspapers gadding about with various scantily clad women.

Ugh, how hard was it to find a good looking wizard who was gay? In the olden days bisexuality and homosexuality was rampant in the wizarding community. It was kept under wraps sure, but about one quarter of the population was bent.

He glanced around the crowded, shadowy bar. Convinced that he would end up miserable and alone. He looked back out the window in time to Ron and Harry picking up their glasses and heading back into the bar.

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><p>Harry and Ron wandered back up to the bar and nodded to Seamus who immediately went about setting them up with a couple more beers.<p>

Once liquored up they headed over to one of the bar tables and stood there, eyeing up the 'talent.' Ron caught the eye of a busty blonde over in the corner and walked over to her with a twinkle in his eye and a swagger in his step.

Harry sighed and glared into his beer. He hated being so fucking shy.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw a pair of polished black shoes come to a stop next to his table. Harry looked up, the surprise of who was standing in front of him written all over his face.

"Ma-malfoy. What are you doing here?"

_**end.**_

Thanks for reading. I hope you liked it, please review. x


	2. Inebriation

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Harry Potter universe, J. K. Rowling is the brains behind it all.

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><p><strong>Note: <strong>Sorry it's taken me so long to upload, my house situation is in turmoil and I'm also getting hit by flu season yayyyy. Will definitely be trying to update more often. Thanks for your patience! xx

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><p><strong>Boyfriend<strong>

**Chapter 2: Inebriation**

Hermione smiled to herself as the bell above the door rang as she entered the bookstore. Papers and folios zoomed around above and the smell of ink and parchment wafted around her. She was definitely in her happy place. She shoved a stray curl behind her ear and rummaged around in the oversized pocket of the set of purple silk robes she'd thrown over her denim shorts and white slouch tank top. She triumphantly pulled out a folded piece of parchment after uttering a silent _accio_.

The clerk at the desk noticed her standing in the doorway and put his quill down on the desk, heading towards her with a smile.

"Hermione! What a pleasure it is to see you again. How may I help you today?" He had his hands clasped in front of him earnestly. She handed him her list and proceeded to follow him over to his desk where he pulled out a rather large ledger that covered most of the available space on the desk.

Wand in hand, he flipped through the pages, locating where the books she wanted to see were. Hermione turned around and looked around the store, staircases lined the left and right walls, leading up to second and third stories, both teeming with bookshelves and towering piles of books.

The books on her list drifted down of their own accord and settled on an empty work table in the back of the shop where she could go through and make her mind up about which ones she wanted to assign this year.

A couple of hours later, the sky was beginning to dim and the candles flared into life around her. She had made up her mind about most things but still could not decide between two books for the 7th year Arithmancy class. The students she had this year were extremely bright and she wanted to make sure that they were significantly challenged and wouldn't sit there bored out of their tree as she was in her make up year at Hogwarts.

A shadow fell over her and a deep, sultry, dry voice sent shivers down her spine.

"I suggest the Advanced Arithmancy for the Auspiciously Minded. It was quite a riveting read." Hermione turned around; ready to reprimand the stranger who had interrupted her train of thought.

"Excuse me, but no one asked your…" The sentence drifted off, and her mouth opened and closed she saw that it was the Headmaster standing behind her.

"S-sir, forgive me, you startled me." She ducked her head, embarrassment blossoming like a red rose across her face.

"That is quite alright Professor Granger." Snape nodded, his long black hair falling into his face, obscuring it from view for the few seconds it took before he pushed it out of his face. He turned on his heel and walked away.

And for a fleeting second, Hermione couldn't help but notice how good he looked in his black muggles slacks and cashmere v-necked sweater.

* * *

><p>Draco smirked at the look in Potter's face. His black hair fell into his eyes as his head jerked up when he noticed the presence of someone else.<p>

"Ma-malfoy. What are you doing here?" His voice shook as if he was unsettled. For a second he wondered why.

"Potter." He nodded at him, a gesture of openness. " Thought I'd buy you a drink." He looked into those green eyes, which widened a little before narrowing suspiciously.

"And why would you do that exactly?" An edge crept into Harry's voice as he sat up straighter, and Draco noticed that his arms flexed visibly underneath the leather as he tensed.

Draco rolled his eyes and folded his arms across his chest. He tilted his head to the side a little, gray eyes searching Harry's green ones.

Harry shifted in his seat; uncomfortable with the way Draco was looking at him. He quickly chugged down the rest of his beer, gathering up his strength, waiting for the insults and insinuations to start flying.

Draco turned on his heel and stalked towards the bar, his blond hair whipping around his face. He half expected Harry to sit there looking like an idiot, but moments later he heard the stool scrape and footsteps follow him. When Harry came to stand next to him at the bar, hands shoved deep into the pockets of his jacket he snuck a look out of the corner of his eye as he held up to fingers to Finnegan.

Draco almost groaned aloud, Harry looked so good in his tight jeans and the way his black hair fell into his bottle green eyes was heavenly. He almost jumped when those very eyes turned to look directly into his own grey ones.

Two glasses of firewhiskey were set down on the bar in front him, and Draco broke the eye contact somewhat reluctantly. He hated that this was the most turned on one look at made him, well possibly ever. And it _had_ to be Harry Potter who did it. He didn't even know if he was gay or straight! He picked up the glasses and turned to hand one to Harry, who looked into the depths of the glass as if would answer life's big questions.

Draco grimaced, why did he even come over to talk to him? Last he remembered he was sitting there ogling the man, and then his treasonous feet were carrying him over to his table. Now it was just awkward and weird.

He shoved his glass forward and clinked against Harry's, who looked up in surprise.

"Cheers." And with a forced smirk on his face he downed the glass, slammed the glass down and walked as fast as he could out of the bar without looking like he was running. The smirk dropped from his face as soon as his back was to Harry. School started soon and he wouldn't have to see him again for a long time.

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><p>Harry stood, mouth gaping open. That was the weirdest 5mins he had experienced in a long time, and he investigated murders for a living. He watched as Malfoy walked away, his black cloak swinging behind him. He had a momentary flashback of watching him walk through London before he chugged down the firewhiskey, spluttering slightly as it churned down his throat.<p>

Ron strolled over a grin on his face and a piece of parchment in his hand. The grin faded as he saw Harry's pale face.

"What happened?" He asked quietly. Harry looked up at him and grinned.

"Nothing. It's fine. I see _you_ were successful." He indicated the piece of paper clutched in Ron's hand. The grin appeared again and he looked over his shoulder to look at the blonde who giggled and waved.

"Yeaaahh, we're going out tomorrow night, have a little… fun. If you know what I mean." He winked and elbowed Harry in the ribs, laughing boisterously. Harry winced and rubbed his side. Ron forgot his own strength sometimes. He laughed along, feigning interest. He couldn't help but think of the way Draco looked at him when they were at the bar, his deep grey eyes boring into his own. It was unnerving to say the least.

The spent the rest of the afternoon downing various drinks, and Ron had convinced him to sit at the booth with the group of girls. A brunette had decided that Harry was her target tonight and he constantly had to rebuff her advances while Ron had his mouth firmly attached to the blonde's.

Hermione appeared about 3 hours later, her bag about 5 pounds heavier than it was that morning. She grimaced as she saw Ron, and collapsed on the bench next to Harry, who was grateful to have an excuse to turn his back to the disappointed looking girl next to him.

"Hermione! Thank Merlin you're here!" He grinned; she was definitely a welcome distraction. She sighed and grabbed his half-drunk pint and chugged it down. Wiping her mouth with the back of her sleeve she sighed and smiled.

"Thanks, I needed that. I feel like I've inhaled a year's worth of dust." She waved a hand at Seamus who grinned and set about bringing them another round.

"I ran into Snape, or rather he crept up on me and scared the shit out of me." Harry laughed, shrugging out of his jacket. He draped it across his knees as he reached for two of the pints set down on the table, handing one to a grateful Hermione.

"I would have loved to see that. Is he still all dark and gloomy, I know it took him a long time to recover from the venom still in his system." He ran his fingers through his hair, the black bangs messy and unkempt after an afternoon in a crowded bar.

"Surprisingly no. He actually seemed somewhat… uh, at peace I suppose. This summer break must have been good for him." She blushed a little as she said this, thinking about how his sweater hugged his unexpectedly nice torso.

Harry nodded, and took another sip of his beer. He leaned back against the booth and slung his arm around Hermione's shoulder. They chatted and drunk some more and soon all of them were very inebriated. They stumbled out the Floo and into their beds in the early hours in the morning.

The last thing that went through Harry's addled brain was the image of Draco's eyes looking at him. He slept with a smile on his face.

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><p>The sunlight streamed through the window where Harry and forgotten to close the blinds the night before. He groaned and rolled over, burying his face in the pillow as his head pounded like a hammer onto a nail. He pulled the covers over his head just as an excessively happy voice carried up the stairs.<p>

"Boys! Breakfast!" It was then that the smell of pancakes and crispy bacon drifted up the stairs and into his bedroom and he forgot about the headache and ran down the stairs in his boxers. When he sat down heavily in a chair, his headache came back in full force just as a pepper up potion was shoved into his hand. He smiled gratefully at Hermione before downing the potion. His headache subsided and he felt his energy levels rise.

Moment's later thudding footsteps came down the stairs as a disheveled Ron emerged, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. The three of them sat around the small kitchen table, sunlight shining through the window and a light breeze coming from the open back door. The chatted and laughed as they ate breakfast and the dishes danced through the sink as Hermione's dishes spell worked it's magic.

Later on, after Hermione had excused herself to the library to curl up with a book, and Ron had grabbed his broom and headed off to the Burrow to participate in the weekly Sunday Weasley Quidditch match, Harry headed upstairs to have a shower in his lavish ensuite. The tiled room was cool and the large shower had faucets coming from all directions.

He stepped out of his boxers and stood in front of the mirror, his legs were long, and his arms and shoulders heavily muscled. He pushed his hair back off his forehead and leant in towards the mirror and looked at his faded scar. It had started to fade after Voldemort died and had long since faded to as near a skin colour as possible. He still knew it was there though and served as a daily reminder to what he had gone through.

He sighed and turned on the shower, the hot spray filling the room with steam. He stepped under the hot water and the sighed as it soothed his aching muscles, he never slept easy when drunk. He stood with his arms braced against the wall as the water streamed onto his neck and down his back. He closed his eyes and just relaxed. This was his private time, his time to reflect.

He reached for the shampoo and massaged it through his hair, he leant his head back and the water flowed across his face. The suds gathered near the drain as he then grabbed the loofah and poured body wash on it, he closed his eyes again as he dragged it across his skin. All of a sudden, the image of a pair of hands replacing his and washing his body rose unbidden behind his eyelids.

His hands drifted lower, washing his thighs and his crotch area. The hands, in his minds eye, caressed him as well as swipe the scrub roughly across his skin. The hands turned into arms and all of a sudden, Harry was imagining a naked Draco Malfoy standing before him, stroking him in the most personal way.

Harry opened his eyes and stiffened. He could not be thinking about him that way. He was Draco Malfoy! He shook his head, water spraying around him and rinsed off quickly and stepped out of the shower, trying to shake the images out of his head, though his arousal was clear as day. He dried off, dressed in his usual garb and headed out the door, grabbing his helmet on the way.

Moment's later he was astride his bike, the wind whistling past him as his bike roared along the highway. No matter how hard he tried the images from the shower kept rising up in front of his eyes.

A couple of hours of mindless drifting, he returned home. Hermione was asleep in the armchair in the library when he checked on her. Ron was still at his parent's house, probably eating them out of house and home. Harry collapsed on the couch in the lounge, putting on a muggle movie. Something called Ironman, a movie he had loved when he saw it the first time.

He sat there with his booted feet propped up on the table in front of him. He was about halfway through the movie when the sound of someone clearing his or her throat startled him. He looked around, and seeing no one, settled back onto the couch.

"Potter!" He sat up and saw a face in the fire, a face belonging to the headmaster of Hogwarts. He moved over to kneel in front of the fireplace.

"Headmaster Snape, what can I do for you?" He had no idea what Snape would be doing in his fireplace. The Floo was open to a select few, Hogwart's being one of them.

"I have a proposition for you." Snape's dark eyes, flickered in the flames. "How would you like to be the new Professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts?"

_**end of chapter 2.**_

thanks for reading xx


	3. Revelation

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Harry Potter universe, J. K. Rowling is the brains behind it all.

* * *

><p><strong>Note: <strong>Thanks for the lovely reviews it is much appreciated!

* * *

><p><strong>Boyfriend<strong>

**Chapter 3: Revelation**

Harry was reeling. He had been offered a teaching position at his Alma Mater, an offer that had come completely out of the blue. He had no idea what to do. On one hand he had only been out of the academy for a year. On the other, he had found that his job was not all that he had expected it to be. He spent most of his time at a desk, paper's piling up. He was more of a trophy for the department than anything else. He collapsed on the couch, the paused movie still displayed on the screen.

Hogwarts. To go back there would be like reliving his teen years, which were still not so far behind him. Only this time, he would be the one to teach and look after the young residents of the ancient castle. Was he ready to have a responsibility like that? To go around, protecting the country from murderous and deranged wizards was one thing, but to look after that same country's young children was on a whole new level.

Then again, maybe this was an opportunity for him. A time for him to show everyone that maybe he didn't have to be the evil fighting 'Chosen' one that he was supposedly destined to be. Maybe he could actually become a teacher? Help show the younger generation that they could defend and rely on themselves and become fully functioning adults in a world still wracked with turmoil.

Harry grabbed the remote and switched off the TV, he wasn't going to be concentrating on it anyway. He wandered through into the kitchen and opened the fridge, staring blankly into its depths, not really looking for anything but more out of habit. He sighed heavily and grabbed a soda before heading upstairs to his room.

He collapsed on his bed; a large king covered in a big white feather duvet, and kicked off his boots. There was a window seat to his left and the doors to his ensuite and walk-in-wardrobe to his right. Other than that there was a couple of photos on the wall but not much else. He found he didn't have much use for lots off stuff in his bedroom when he had an entire house to put everything.

Harry's eyes drifted closed, what was he going to do?

When Harry woke up hours later, it was dark outside. The light from the moon illuminated the room and Harry could tell from the clock that it was 9pm. He groaned and his stomach rumbled, he hadn't eaten since breakfast that morning. He stripped off his jeans and pulled on some black sweat pants. The kitchen was dark when he made it down the stairs and light was flickering in the lounge doorway.

He saw that Ron was on the couch watching a movie.

"Hey, how's it?" Harry asked, running his hands through his bed mussed hair. Ron turned around, an arm along the back of the couch, one ankle resting on his other leg.

"Haven't seen you in a while mate, you look like shit." Ron grinned, white teeth showing up stark against his tanned face and titan hair. Harry laughed.

"Thanks man, just been asleep since about four. Is Hermione here?" Harry grabbed an apple out of the bowl of fruit on the bench and then sat cross-legged on the couch next to Ron.

"Nah, she went over to Hogwarts. Said something about a meeting or something? I dunno, pretty weird for a Sunday." He turned back to the movie, which was some sort of action flick with a car chase with a couple of fiery explosions thrown in.

Were they discussing the possibility of Harry working at Hogwarts? He wondered if Hermione would be happy about it. Surely she would, to be the youngest person there by a decade or so surely wouldn't be the easiest thing. Maybe he could do it too?

Harry took another bite of his apple. Was he really considering leaving the career he had worked so hard to get, for a job that he wasn't really qualified to do? It would be a challenge for sure, something he was sorely lacking in his life.

He leant back against the cushions, the movie flashing across his face. He was seriously considering this. Moving back to Hogwarts and starting again, try to eke out a life that he wants for himself and not the one that was paved for him by the people around him.

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><p>A house elf set a decanter of wine and an empty glass down on the table next to his armchair. Draco nodded his thanks and poured himself a large glass and took a huge gulp of it. He currently sat in the study of his large apartment in Kensington. He had purchased it after the war and his father had granted him full use of his inheritance. With high ceilings and large windows it was light and airy and had the type of sophistication in which he wished to live his life. He was going to be sad to leave it to move into a set of rooms at Hogwarts.<p>

Maybe he'd come back on the weekends, find some alone time and peace in the seclusion of his home. He smiled and tucked his hair behind his ear. More than likely that would not happen though.

The crystal chandelier twinkled above him, throwing fractured light all over the room. He set his book down on his lap and took another sip of his wine. His mind drifted back to the day before, to the odd encounter that occurred at the Loony.

Harry Potter. Well that was unexpected, to say the least. He had definitely grown up from the underfed, scrawny little boy that had saved the world. He was definitely a… man. Draco shivered a little, the way that he had felt being in such close proximity to him had been something he hadn't felt in a long time; physically at least.

He groaned aloud, he had smelt so good too.

Draco shook his head and gulped down the rest of his wine. Nope, he wasn't going to let this happen. He was _not_ going to obsess over Harry Potter. He was going to Hogwarts soon and he wouldn't have to see him again for a long time.

Yet when he closed his eyes, he couldn't help but see those bright green eyes staring at him from under that black fringe. They pierced him, made his heart clench a little in his chest.

Draco stood up suddenly, the chair scraping loudly against the polished wood floor. No more, he was going to go out and forget about him. Forget about the boy wonder that he had teased for years and would never allow him, Draco Malfoy, to prove that he had changed. He stormed out of the room and into the kitchen that was made of highly polished steel and flawless marble. The liquor cabinet was loaded with all sorts of spirits, magical and muggle. He grabbed the bottle of tequila and poured himself 5 shots and downed them all.

He wasn't going to feel anything tonight, least of all anything for Harry.

* * *

><p>Hermione smiled as she looked around the room. She was in the staff room at Hogwarts, a large room with large windows on one wall, managing to encompass the Quidditch Pitch, the lake and Hagrid's hut in the views it displayed. There were tea trolleys permanently stocked with food and piping hot beverages by the house elves, and plush armchairs and worktables scattered around the room. On one side of the room was a long table surrounded by chairs, resembling the tables in the Great Hall.<p>

Currently the staff of Hogwarts occupied that table, Snape sat at the head of the table with Professor McGonagall to his right. Hermione sat about halfway down, a cup of tea in front of her and the various parchments that had been handed out at the beginning of the meeting. They had the agenda for the meeting, as well as a proposed schedule of the first week back at Hogwarts once term started.

She had felt at home in this room as soon as she had set foot in here a year ago. The comfort this place afforded her was wonderful. She could now talk to her former teachers as friends and fellow educators. She was in her element.

Hermione glanced up at Snape, who was talking candidly with Minerva. The light thrown from the candles illuminated the shiny knot of scar tissue at the base of his neck, one of the reminders from the war that he would carry with him always. After Voldemort had left him to die in the boat shed, she and Harry had rushed in. Snape had been on the brink of death, and had bid Harry to take his memories and remember him as the man who had loved his mother for his entire life.

They had rushed to leave, believing that Snape was breathing in his last few gulps of air. Hermione had turned back to take in one last look of the man she had never truly known, and a spell she had seen in amongst the many books she had read in preparation for the Horcrux hunt. It was a spell that put ones body in a state of stasis; a period in which the body was no longer leaking its life-source. The poison would remain in his system causing untold pain but would not kill him, there would be time for them to save him.

She was jolted out of her trip into her memories by an amused Filius Flitwick.

"Hermione dear, did you hear what Minerva just said? Severus just received a letter from Mr. Potter, he's accepted the position as Defence Professor!" He grinned and clapped his hands, his hair waving wildly around his head. "Perhaps this time the 'curse' will be broken eh?"

Hermione looked at him in shock before smiling, Harry was coming to Hogwarts! She then realized who else was going to be there. Draco Malfoy, the newly appointed Assistant Potions Professor. Goody, this was going to be interesting. She glanced up at Snape again, who was looking at her with his dark eyes. Hermione felt a shiver in her spine, those eyes had seen so much, yet she felt like they only saw her at that very moment.

Perhaps the unbroken eye contact lasted longer that it normally should between a Headmaster and his former student. But the intensity thrilled Hermione, leaving her breathless in a way that Ron never had.

She sat back in her chair, a blush forming across her chest. When the attraction to Snape, no Severus, had started she didn't know. While she had been in school, Hermione had never thought about him in anyway closely resembling romantic.

Since Hermione had started as a Professor at Hogwarts he had treated her as an equal, however begrudgingly, and not as a young schoolgirl to be looked down upon. She had done her training, gone to muggle and wizarding schools simultaneously, she was more than capable to handle her fair share of feisty students. He had been kind and freely giving with his time, willing to help her transition into the system of Hogwarts in a way that was new to her. Of course he wasn't the main person to help her, Minerva had been a great friend and confidante to her. They had become quite close and often shared a glass of wine in the evening next to the fire, or patrolled the halls together at night.

Hermione excused herself and breathed a sigh of relief as the cool air of the corridor soothed her flushed skin. She wandered down the hall, letting her black robes fly out behind her, her jean clad legs carried her onwards till she was standing in front of The Fat Lady's empty frame. This happened sometimes, she would just end up here out of habit.

She sighed and leant against the wall, the cool stone hard against her back. Ever since she and Ron had broken up she had felt a sense of relief, as if she now had the chance to find someone who would appreciate her desire for knowledge and have a wildly passionate love for her. She deserved to feel wanted and sexy. Ron had never made her feel _sexy_.

Yes she was short, but she had curves. She wasn't one of those girls who were all bones and angles, she didn't think that was what a woman should be. It was not an image she strived to achieve unlike a lot of young women these days. Her brown hair was a tamed mane of curls now, not the bushy mess it had been in her youth. Her chocolate eyes sparkled with intelligence and humor, a smile always ready to grace her full lips. Faint freckles spread across her nose, chest and shoulders with long hours spent in the sun over summer. She was a gorgeous young woman who dressed in a way that made her feel good, which in turn made her confidence attractive to other people.

Maybe she would find that love she so craved, the torturous gut wrenching love that one couldn't live without. She should open herself up to it, instead of shutting herself away with her books and parchments.

That night Hermione made the conscious decision to open herself up to love, no matter what form it took.

* * *

><p>In a dark room, somewhere deep in the country a woman lay in bed. Deep coughs wracked her body. Her pale hands lay on the coverlet, the bones standing out in an unhealthy way.<p>

"Please Lucius, don't tell him yet. He's so happy, finally. Let him have that a while longer. I don't want my little boy to go back to that dark place." Her blonde hair was lank and her sunken eyes gazed upon her husband who was kneeling on the floor next to the bed. She lifted her hand to wipe away the tear that feel from the grey eyes what were so much like his son's.

**_end of chapter 2._**

**__**thanks for reading xx


	4. Moving Day

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Harry Potter universe, J. K. Rowling is the brains behind it all.

Thanks for your patience guys, the past few months have been crazy for me. New job, new house, new car, new boyfriend. But here we are finally. I promise to try and keep up with this regularly. I still have big plans for this story. xxxxx

* * *

><p><strong>Boyfriend<strong>

**Chapter 4: Moving Day**

It was the 30th of August and the Potter House was in complete disarray, Harry and Hermione were to leave for Hogwarts that afternoon. It had been about 6 weeks since Harry had accepted the position of DADA professor and it had been a whirlwind of meetings and course planning up until now. Resigning from the Ministry hadn't been fun. He had been reamed out by his boss and six of his bosses, but he had been steady in his decision to leave.

Walking out of that office for good was the best feeling in the world. He was leaving behind a world of blood and violence. Ron of course hadn't been too happy that his partner was leaving him in the dust but when Harry had explained his reasoning he had had to concede that in the long run, it was probably the better option for him.

Hermione of course had loved it. After she had found out at a meeting the staff had been having she had just about attacked Harry when she arrived home, nearly deafening him with her high pitched squeal.

Harry grinned as he shoved a pile of t-shirts into his trunk; packing wasn't so hard for him. He tended not to attach himself to many personal objects. Unlike Hermione who seemed to completely divest her room of all her belongings into magically enlarged trunks.

Last week he had taken his bike up to Hogwarts where it was waiting for him. Hagrid had just about teared up when he had seen it again.

"Harryyyyy!" Hermione's panicked voice roared up the stairwell and Harry grinned as her ran down the stairs towards her room. This was the third time today she apparently had a life-changing crisis. He stopped outside her door and stared in amazement. It was empty. Well except for the bed. Hermione was standing next to a pile of trunks, a humungous pile. She looked at him helplessly and gestured towards the mountain of her belongings.

"I have too much stuff." She whined.

"Ha ha you're such a girl Mione. How are you going to get all this to Hogwarts? One at a time? It'll take you forever." He smiled at her and flicked his hair out of his eyes. She stood there with drooped shoulders, her long hair draped over her face. He laughed and hugged her with one arm.

"It'll be alright, we'll just shrink it down as much as we can. Then surely they'll all fit in a bag? Remember your magic Hermione." Harry smiled as she brightened.

"Oh right, magic. Oops." She laughed and set about shrinking her stuff and Harry left the room, shaking his head as he climbed the stairs back up to his room. Ron was at work and wouldn't be home in time to see them off, so they had had a few farewell drinks last night. Ron would continue to live in the house while they were away. Harry didn't imagine it would stay clean very long.

A couple of hours later, one of which Harry had spent waiting for Hermione, they were all set to leave. The two of them gathered in the lounge with their belongings. Harry glanced at his watch, Snape had scheduled their arrivals so that people didn't all arrive at once with their worldly possessions. At 2 o'clock he smiled at Hermione.

"Ok, here I go, into the world of responsibility." He grabbed his trunk and a handful of floo powder and jumped into the flames.

"Hogwarts, Headmaster's office."

* * *

><p>Draco stood admiring his quarters, hands on hips. In the last hour he had managed to turn the completely boring set of rooms into something that he could live in without completely cringing. All teachers lived off a corridor only accessible from the teachers lounge. Only Severus had rooms away from everyone else, branching off from the Headmaster's office. Draco assumed all the rooms were the same, a sitting room near the door, then leading into the bedroom with an en suite off that. What had originally been a brown sofa and one bookshelf in front of the fireplace was now a large black velvet wing-backed armchair and a deep seated leather sofa. On either side of the marble fireplace were two mahogany bookshelves stretching up to ceiling height, already covered in a selection of novels, potions and historical tomes. Above the fire place was a landscape of Malfoy Mansion, the only sign that it was a magical painting was the changing sky and forest.<p>

He walked into the bedroom where a large four-poster bed was covered in a navy blue duvet and a multitude of big fluffy pillows. He was going to be comfortable when he slept, no matter how feminine it looked. He was gay after all, and it's not like anyone was going to be in here.

He sighed and sat on the end of the bed, tucking is hair behind his ear. He hadn't sex in weeks, no make that months, and he felt like any extra time he had was now spent wanking; usually to images of Harry.

Yep that hadn't gone away. He was still attracted to that… man.

He had caught glimpses of him in public or at the Loony, each time looking absolutely gorgeous. Each time Draco had seen him he had taken mental images of his ass, or his arms and used them to create fantasies for his own sick pleasure.

Oh well, now he was tucked away at Hogwarts where he didn't have to the venture into the wizarding world again until next year. Harry could just fade away into a distant memory. Maybe he would meet some nice, hot wizard up in Hogsmeade and forget all about Harry-nice-ass-Potter.

It was about then that his stomach rumbled. Draco got up and checked his hair in the mirror. He had just opened the door when he heard a familiar voice.

"Hermione! Hurry up! Which one is numberrrr… seven." A deep voice that sounded oh so familiar. A voice that sent shivers down Draco's spine.

"I dunno Harry, maybe the door with a '7" on it." Draco edged open the door a little to see Harry's back directly in front of his. It was then that Draco realized that his was room number eight. Which meant that Harry was living directly across the hall from him. Which meant that he was going to be the first thing that Draco saw every morning.

He closed the door quietly, his stomach still rumbling and leant against it.

Fuck.

* * *

><p>Harry stepped out of the fireplace, and shook ash out of his hair.<p>

"I think you need to clean your fireplace Potter." Harry grinned at the headmaster who was sitting at his desk, looking completely relaxed in a pair of black slacks and black shirt.

"Apparently so, wait till Hermione comes through. I'll never hear the end of how I ruined her hair." Snape snorted and picked up a leaf of parchment, walking around his desk towards Harry.

"Ok well here's a list of all the passwords you need to know as well as your room and classroom assignments. Though I'm quite sure that you know where the Defence rooms are."

"How could I forget?" Harry grinned and took the paper. He looked down at the parchment, and was amazed at the sheer amount of passwords needed to access parts of the castle. Down the bottom it listed his room as "No. 7." He looked up at Snape.

"Are rooms not off the offices?" Snape laughed.

"That's what you thought all these years? I thought with the map in your possesion you would have worked it out. The teachers quarters are off the Staff Lounge." Harry smiled sheepishly at Snape before jumping out of the way as a grayish looking Hermione fell out of the floo.

"Harry!" He ran out of the room laughing, there was no way he was going to let Hermione catch him. He wandered down the hall, reliving his memories a little as he went along. He had reached the main stairwell and sat there for a few minutes before he heard a huffing Hermione behind him. They walked down to the ground floor, trunks floating behind them. Once they reached the entrance hall, Hermione lead the way into the left wing hallway, off of which the staff room was located.

Harry looked around; he'd never really been down here before. No need to, it only accessed the Hufflepuff common room and the staff room, and apparently the quarters as well. Hermione opened the door to the staff room; Harry hadn't been here either. His meetings were always held in the Headmaster's office.

He knew immediately that he would like teaching here. It felt like a home rather than a workplace. It was like being back at school again, without the homework. And it would be he who would get to dole out the punishments now. Harry grinned wickedly and shrugged off his leather jacket.

Hermione headed to the end of the room and opened a door, next to which was a wardrobe. Harry eyed it up and remembered Lupin telling him about a Boggart which came from the wardrobe in the teachers lounge. They headed through the door, well Harry did while Hermione stopped to talk to a painting in the room that had welcomed her back.

Harry stood in a wood-paneled hallway with fire lit torches lining the walls that had doors at regular intervals all down the hallway. Harry walked down the hall, yelling behind him to Hermione.

"Hermione! Hurry up! Which one is numberrrr… seven." He laughed at her response, as he came to stand in front of his doorway. The door was plain, marked with a gold plaque engraved with a number 7.

Sensing movement behind him, he turned to stare at a closed door. Shrugging his shoulders he moved forward and pushed open the door.

Well, plain was one word to describe the room that was in front of him. A moldy looking sofa and a decrepit looking bookshelf inhabited the room. It was a decent size, but rather bare. He turned to look at Hermione who laughed when she poked her head in the door.

"Looks like Bellamy, your predecessor, took all the good stuff with him when Snape fired him. Still, mine was empty when I got here. A few good spells will fix this." Harry turned to look at her, despair written all over his face.

"I hate to think what's in the bedroom." Hermione laughed again and Harry turned to stare at the dark doorway leading to the bedroom.

"Well I'm down in 16 if you need anything." She patted him on the back and shut the door behind her as she left. Right, Harry thought, time to decorate.

Two hours later, a sweaty Harry collapsed on his new couch. It was a light taupe color and was an L-shaped couch situated in front of the fireplace. There was an array of white and red cushions on the couch and the white armchair that was to the left of the couch. The entire room had bookshelves running around the walls at three feet high with photos and candles on top of the shelves. A television created to work in Hogwarts sat in the corner. Luckily he had thought to order that a few weeks ago so he wouldn't have to go without movies.

The bedroom, which just had a mattress on the ground when he had arrived, now had a king size bed with the usual white duvet and gigantic pillows. There was a black blanket on the end of the bed. There was a wardrobe behind the door that now held his many jeans and t-shirts; he also had his formal black robes with black velvet trim which were to be his everyday robes as a professor. Hermione had also made him buy proper shirts and slacks, but he doubted he would wear them. There was also no way he was going to wear some pansy black shoes, his boots were not leaving his feet.

The bathroom had the classic big tub but also had a fantastic shower, which he planned to try out in just a moment. He went to his door and peeked out into the hallway, he had heard some movement earlier as the rest of the professors moved into their rooms. The majority of them were here when he was a pupil and only had to unpack and not decorate. Just as he was closing the door again, he noticed someone coming in through the entrance. Someone who was tall, thin and blonde. Someone who had a laden plate of food and was munching on a chicken leg when they stopped in their tracks when they saw Harry.

"Malfoy! What the fuck are you doing here?!"

* * *

><p>Hermione stumbled through the fireplace and into Snape's office, grey ash falling off her in spades.<p>

"Harry!" She saw his back as he ran out of the room laughing and groaned as she set about shaking all the ash and soot off herself.

"I hope you're going to clean that up Miss Granger." Snape's voice wafted across the room and into her ear like a sultry whisper. She shivered at the sound of it. She had dressed up a little today. Normally she'd be in shorts and a singlet, but today she'd worn a sundress, that was a little tighter than she'd normally wear. It was a soft pink that clung to her breasts and hugged her waist before falling loosely to mid-thigh. She'd also worn brown sandal wedges that enhanced the shape of her legs.

Secretly she hoped Snape's look would linger a little longer than usual, that his eyes would darken in lust. Apparently though, it didn't make a difference what she wore, his eyes still slid away from her, indifferent.

Hermione sighed and picked up her suitcase, she was about to head out of the office when Snape piped up behind her.

"Hermione, you forgot your paperwork." She paused in the doorway, her back to him. She set her suitcase down again and spun on her heel. She walked back towards Snape's desk where he was sitting with an arm outstretched and parchment clutched in his hand. She breathed out slowly as she walked towards him, how did he look so good always in black. Today his hair was tied back, but there were a few loose strands that had fallen down to frame his face.

He was looking down at his desk, writing something, when she stood in front of him. She reached out to grab the parchment, when he looked up at her. His dark eyes pierced hers and she couldn't breathe until he looked away. She then took the parchment out of his hand.

She was turning to leave, when his hand grasped her wrist. She turned to look back at him.

"You have ash on your face." He stated bluntly. Hermione blushed and wiped her hand over her cheeks and forehead.

"No… oh hang on." Snape stepped out from behind his desk and stood in front of her. He towered over her, his throat at eye level. He lightly gripped her chin with one hand and wiped his thumb down the side of her nose. He showed her his ash smeared thumb and released her chin. He took a step back, and Hermione felt her body follow unconsciously.

It was when she saw his eyes widen a little that she realized that she now stood at an uncomfortably close distance to him. She swallowed hard. Shit.

She looked up at him, and he sneered down at her.

"Miss Granger, what do you think you're doing?" He put his hands on her shoulders to push her away. Hermione's hands came up and grasped his wrists. _What am I doing!?_ She thought.

"My name is Hermione." She said quietly. Snape's narrowed his eyes.

"I know what your name is." He said softly, his hands tightening on her shoulders, where she held them in place.

"Say it,"

"Excuse me?" He said sharply.

"Say my name, treat me like an adult for once in your life." She ignored the fact that he hadn't been the slightest bit degrading or mean since she had become a professor.

"Miss Granger… Hermione, can you ple…" He was cut off when Hermione, grasped the front of his shirt and stood on her toes to plant her lips softly on his. Her mind was screaming at her, her thoughts running a mile a minute through her head. Yet she was oddly clear about what she was doing.

Snape's hands slid around her shoulders and pulled her body against his as his lips softened against hers. She sighed slid her other arm around his waist. It was then he must have realized what he was doing and his hands slid back to her shoulders and pushed her away.

Hermione stumbled back, and her hand came up to her lips. She stared at him in shock, just as he stared at her much in the same way. He leant against the desk, his hands clutching at the sides as if to keep him from falling.

Hermione turned and ran from the room, grabbing her suitcase as she left.

What had she done?

* * *

><p>Draco paused mid-chew, he looked down the hallway to see an incredulous Harry standing in front of his room in a pair of black track pants and a white wife beater. It was the first time he had really seen that Harry was quite toned, his muscles on glorious display. Not to mention his messy hair in complete disarray.<p>

He became aware that he was gaping, after swallowing his current mouthful of chicken. He plastered his usual sneer back on his face.

"Potter, I might ask you the same thing. What business do you have teaching?" He walked towards his room, carefully balancing his full plate of food. When he stood in front of Harry, he gulped. How was he going to handle this for a whole year?

Pining after a straight guy. Brilliant.

He backed towards his door as Harry glared at him. Harry then turned and retreated into his room and slammed the door behind him.

Oh Thank Merlin! Draco thought and opened the door to his room. It was when he sat on the couch and had set the food on the coffee table that he groaned aloud. This year was going to suck. He knew it.

* * *

><p>Harry leant against the back of his door after he had shut it. Draco was going to be here all year. Just when he thought that he could get away from all that.<p>

It didn't help that he looked amazing, even with his face stuffed full of food. The ways his slate grey eyes had stared him down made him shiver. He groaned and let his head fall back and thump against the door. How was he going to handle living across the hall from him?

_End of chapter 4._


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